Thursday, March 27, 2008
Cutting-edge 1950's technology.
There are many things about the American motor industry that bemuse me, not least of which how they manage to get so little power out of their engines. Take the new Mustang for example. Ford are proud to tout the 300hp, 320 lb-ft, 4.6 litre V8 engine. For the 21st century, that's not stellar, and we're talking about the GT here - it only has single overhead cams. If you stump for the Mustang V6, you're saddled with a 4.0 litre engine which only manages 210hp and 240 lb-ft of torque and it's a cast iron block!
For comparison, look at the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X. It sports dual overhead cams, an aluminium block, 4-cylinder 2.0 litre engine that generates 291hp and 300 lb-ft of torque. That's only 20hp down on the Mustang V8 for an engine with half the number of cylinders and less than half the displacement. Compared to the V6 Mustang, it's 81hp more.
Ford tout their "performance driven chassis" yet the rear suspension is a live axle - that's stone age. Live axle is for lumbering off-roaders (real ones, not SUVs) and trucks. You simply don't put 1950's technology on a 21st century car.
Unless you're Ford.
I'm left thinking of the cockney rhyming slang for pony. The Mustang : the pony car.
For comparison, look at the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X. It sports dual overhead cams, an aluminium block, 4-cylinder 2.0 litre engine that generates 291hp and 300 lb-ft of torque. That's only 20hp down on the Mustang V8 for an engine with half the number of cylinders and less than half the displacement. Compared to the V6 Mustang, it's 81hp more.
Ford tout their "performance driven chassis" yet the rear suspension is a live axle - that's stone age. Live axle is for lumbering off-roaders (real ones, not SUVs) and trucks. You simply don't put 1950's technology on a 21st century car.
Unless you're Ford.
I'm left thinking of the cockney rhyming slang for pony. The Mustang : the pony car.
Monday, March 24, 2008
Too much safety can be a bad thing.
I believe there is such a thing as too much safety. A lot of clever people in white overcoats spend a lot of time trying to explain why it is that people drive badly.
They will blame environmental factors, roadside furniture and the proximity of hedgehogs to the roadside.
In reality it can be traced back to a single element - super-safe vehicles. Drivers are now surrounded by airbags, pre-tensioning seatbelts and crumple zones. Double-glazing and great soundproofing serve to isolate us from road noise, just as drive-by-wire, brake-by-wire and electric power steering serve to isolate us from the feel of the car and what it's doing. Pre-emptive radar-controlled ABS brakes are designed to remove the responsibility of paying attention to the road ahead just as traction control, anti-slip, ride-levelling are designed to save us from greasy road surfaces and ham-fisted cornering. Backup sensors and cameras are there to save us having to turn around and actually look what's behind us, instead giving us more technology to blame when we reverse into lamp posts and over small children.
No longer do drivers have to be trained to understand how their manipulation of the controls affects the dynamics of the car. Instead it's turning into an instant gratification, point-and-squirt world.
The result is that drivers are lulled into the belief that no matter how badly they screw up, their car will save them. In America, On-Star will even call for help after you've caused the accident so now even if you are injured, the car will call for help for you whilst you unconsciously bleed to death. Coupled with the cosseting seats, the sat-nav, the onboard audio and video entertainment systems and the multitude of other distractions, is it any surprise the standard of driving is plummeting?
Oh and cellphones of course. I bet 90% of accidents nowadays happen when one driver has a cellphone clamped to their ear, but that's a topic for a different day.
They will blame environmental factors, roadside furniture and the proximity of hedgehogs to the roadside.
In reality it can be traced back to a single element - super-safe vehicles. Drivers are now surrounded by airbags, pre-tensioning seatbelts and crumple zones. Double-glazing and great soundproofing serve to isolate us from road noise, just as drive-by-wire, brake-by-wire and electric power steering serve to isolate us from the feel of the car and what it's doing. Pre-emptive radar-controlled ABS brakes are designed to remove the responsibility of paying attention to the road ahead just as traction control, anti-slip, ride-levelling are designed to save us from greasy road surfaces and ham-fisted cornering. Backup sensors and cameras are there to save us having to turn around and actually look what's behind us, instead giving us more technology to blame when we reverse into lamp posts and over small children.
No longer do drivers have to be trained to understand how their manipulation of the controls affects the dynamics of the car. Instead it's turning into an instant gratification, point-and-squirt world.
The result is that drivers are lulled into the belief that no matter how badly they screw up, their car will save them. In America, On-Star will even call for help after you've caused the accident so now even if you are injured, the car will call for help for you whilst you unconsciously bleed to death. Coupled with the cosseting seats, the sat-nav, the onboard audio and video entertainment systems and the multitude of other distractions, is it any surprise the standard of driving is plummeting?
Oh and cellphones of course. I bet 90% of accidents nowadays happen when one driver has a cellphone clamped to their ear, but that's a topic for a different day.
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